Cherry Blossoms
by Calamitii
Summary: Mikey befriends a Foot Ninja who isn't what she seems.


I am not perfect. There are many things that are not right here. Mikey feels really out of character to me =/, and I hope to change that soon. And Raph's accent… It's been a while since I've attempted to write it hahaha, so we'll see how that pans out. It's been a while since I've written anything turtle-y so I'm a bit rusty…Sorry 'bout that.

First time I've ever published something on here. Let's see how this goes.

Setting: This isn't set in any particular universe. It likes to bounce between 2003 and the 2007 movie… I don't even know which universe it's in.

The turtles do not belong to me. Characters that are not canon belong to me.

POV switches, _italics_ indicate who it is from.

_Sakura_

We sat in silence watching as the turtles ran across the building's rooftops. I watched as the sea-green turtle, the one in the orange band, played around with the purple clad one. They seemed to be joking about something, as they were both laughing.

In my peripherals I saw Amane, the only woman Foot Elite, raise her hand and wave it forward telling us to move.

In seconds chaos was unleashed as we descended on the turtles. It wasn't long before I was standing over one of the turtles. The purple banded one. I had knocked his bo staff out of his reach and now his life rested in my hands.

As I stared into his wide chocolate brown eyes I saw a certain… gentleness. He was a child, just like I was. A child who had been forced to grow up to fast, staring into his eyes I found that I couldn't raise my kusarigama. In my moment of hesitation I was kicked roughly to the side. My weapon flew from my fingertips and my head connected with the concrete with a resounding crack. I could feel the hot sticky blood running down the side of my face. Slowly I got on my elbows and looked up; it was the red banded turtle who towered over me.

"Do what you may." I said, glaring at him, "Go ahead, finish me, anything is better than this life." I recognized a certain pleading in my voice when I realized what Amane would do to me after this battle.

"Now why would I do such a t'ing as that." He said before slipping into the shadows with the others.

The rooftop was quiet for a moment, with the stillness that came after the battle.

"SAKURA!"

I looked up to see Amane stalking towards me, my kusarigama in her hands. I got to my feet as quickly as my concussed brain would allow and darted off in the opposite direction. I didn't get far before the weighted end of my weapon connected with the small of my back sending me hurtling straight into to the ground.

As I lay there breathless I saw a flash of concern in a familiar pair of green eyes, I gave a slight nod squeezing my eyes shut as I gasped for air.

"Leave us." Amane said, waving the Foot away.

Once all they were all gone, Amane stepped forward and grabbed my braid lifting my face up to meet hers. "Now tell me, Sakura, why did you hesitate?"

"I don't think I'm worthy enough to answer your question," I spat.

Amane let go of my braid pushing me back down to the ground. She pulled off her mask and turned towards me, "Prepare to spar."

I rose to my feet and yanked my own mask off, flicking my bangs out of my face. Before I was ready she kicked me in the side, where the red banded turtle had kicked me earlier knocking the wind out of me. Despite the pain, I held tightly to her leg trying to make her loose balance. I underestimated her as she flipped and brought her other leg to connect with the side of my face. I let go and stumbled back as she landed. Rubbing my bruising face, I spat blood out and went on the offensive. She dodged my first attack to her face but was caught off guard by amateur punch to her midsection. She doubled over and I turned to run, but the weighted chain of my kusarigama connected with my back again, stunning me and sending me tumbling. I landed against the wall, coughing I curled in on myself in pain.

Amane approached me throwing the kusarigama to the side. She grabbed my braid and brought me into the sitting position to look into her cold gray eyes, _my _gray eyes. "Dearest daughter, you will be punished for your insolence."

I stopped fighting her and slumped in defeat.

_Michelangelo_

"Hey guys," I called to my brothers, "I left something at April's. I'll catch up with you later."

Leo looked hesitant to let me go but after a moments consideration said, "Okay, Mikey. Just be careful and hurry back."

"You got it, bro." I said, watching Leo slid the manhole cover back into place.

Once I was sure they were gone I retraced my steps back to our recent battle. I donno why… something just seemed off. It was the same with the battle against the Foot last week too. There was an off feeling. Like a sort of unbalance, nothing like the normally sinister, dark aura that usually came with the Foot. Granted that was most defiantly still there, there was something else. Kinda like confusion. It was weeeeeeird.

I stopped in my thoughts when I came to our recent battle ground. The Foot were still there. That was strange. The Foot usually left right away. I stuck to the shadows and watched. Okay… maybe I was wrong.

There were only two Foot ninja, a woman and a girl. Masks off, they were fighting each other. _Since when do ninja's take their masks off? _ I thought briefly before wondering what they were still doing there _fighting_ no less. As I watched their fight I heard Raph's voice in my mind. _ "Dis is great! Why don't we just let dem kill each otha off."_

I scoffed at Raph's voice and continued to watch the fight, the girl landed a good punch to the woman's gut. As she was bent over the girl turned and started to run towards my hiding place. She didn't seem to see me though; her eyes were wide in desperation.

My eyes widened as I saw the woman straighten up and skillfully maneuver the kusarigama she was holding, the girl was never going to make it. I winced as I heard the gasp from the girl as the weight nailed her in the back. She fell and skidded to the wall where she came to a stop coughing and curling in on herself.

I was sickened by the smile the woman gave as she threw the weapon to the side and walked towards the girl. I could only watch as she grabbed the girl's braid and raised her head to eye level. The girl was struggling weakly.

The woman spoke in a low voice, with a slight foreign accent. "Dearest daughter, you will be punished for your insolence."

_What? _My mind screamed. _Mother? What kind of mother would do this to their kid? _

The girl stopped fighting and slumped.

I watched horrified as 'mother dearest' tossed her daughter to the side. "Answer me again. Why did you hesitate _again_?" She asked venomously. "You had a perfect shot at one of the turtles tonight, the purple banded one. You could have easily been rid of him, as with the orange banded turtle last week. But you didn't. You _hesitated._ Cost us a chance to get rid of _two _of the turtles! Why did you _hesitate?_"

The girl was silent.

The woman gazed down at the girl with a stone cold gaze. "Why do you continually disobey me? Your _mother?_"

"Never." The girl hissed. "_Never. _Were you my _mother."_

The rooftop was silent.

"Clean yourself up before you come home," 'Mother' ninja said, turning and walking away. She was gone in an instant leaping across the rooftops.

Turning my attention away from the woman I looked back to the girl. Now that 'mother' was gone, I had a clear view of the girl's face. I watched with a pang of sadness as tears streamed down her face. The rooftop was silent as I stayed in silence and the girl stayed laying in the same slumped over spot.

"Why me? What did I do?" Came a soft whisper. I nearly jumped out of my shell before realizing that it was the girl speaking.

"I donno, Dudette. Didja do something bad in a past life?" It came tumbling out of my mouth before I realized I had said that out loud. _Crap._ Raph and Leo would surely kill me if they found out I had just blown my cover like that.

The girl shot up. In seconds she was on her feet, in an defensive position. I noticed that she was swaying back and forth. She cringed and grasped at her side crashing down to one knee. She braced herself with her free hand as she gasped for air.

"Whoa! Are you okay there?" What was I _doing?_ Talking to a Foot Ninja? I didn't need my brothers to tell me that I was insane… Yet there was something different about this girl, and she did _not_ kill me and Donnie when she had the chance. In fact she had stood there for a solid minute before turning away from me and dropping her weapon.

I jumped down from my perch and in doing so stepped away from the shadows. The girl's eyes widened and she nearly screamed. She did, however, launch herself back and scramble away as fast as she could.

"No! I'm sorry! I'm sorry for everything! I don't want to fight you! I'm forced to do it!" She cried holding her hand over her head in defense.

Hmm. Well that was different. Forced to fight?

_Sakura_

"Huh? You're forced to fight?" The turtle asked me.

I opened my eyes open to see him standing a few yards away from me. He wasn't coming any closer, and his blue eyes held nothing but concern and curiosity. I attempted to stand to give me a more equal footing. I used the wall as a brace as I swayed on my feet.

"Are you okay?" He asked. His concern was genuine. It confused me. Were we not sworn enemies? We were supposed to hate each other with every fiber of our being, trained to kill each other upon meeting, compelled to be rid of each other… so why did I not feel any of this?

"I…I think…No, I'm not." I sighed, "Why do you care? Are we not sworn enemies?"

"I don't know. You seem different than the others." He stared at me. His blue eyes were starting to get to me.

I let out a bitter laugh. "Yeah, I guess I could be considered different."

He just stared at me. What were with those _eyes?_ They were so blue and pure… innocent. How could he be this evil monster that my mother had conjured him up to be?

"So…why didn't you kill me? Or Donnie for that matter, when you had the chance? Why did you hesitate?"

Donnie? I blanked for a moment. Oh, he must mean the purple banded turtle from tonight. "Why? Because I didn't want to… It wasn't right. It isn't right. I looked at him. And… And I realized that he was no monster, but a child… like me. One that had been forced to grow up to fast." I slumped down to the ground resting against the wall.

The turtle hesitantly came and sat down next to me. However neither of us was completely relaxed. We both had our guard up, ready for the unexpected.

"Well…Thanks." He said.

I looked at him questioningly.

"For you know… Not killing me. Or Donnie." He said, "That would have put you on Leo and Raph's hit list."

I nodded.

_Michelangelo_

What was I doing? Raph and Leo would surely kill me if they ever found out about this.

I looked at the girl who was sitting next to me. She had nodded and her eyes had slipped shut. I noticed all the congealed blood on her head. It would be very bad if she fell asleep.

"I'm Michelangelo." I said, trying to keep her awake.

"Sakura." The girl said quietly."

"That's pretty," I said. And I was telling the truth. It really was a pretty name.

"Mhmm."

"So, Sakura…" I started awkwardly. "How are you, going to get home?"

"Not going home… But… I do not know."

"If you're not going home then how are you going to get patched up?" I asked.

"Going to my brothhheeerrrssss-," She yawned, "Brother's apartment, it's not too far from here."

"I hate to break it to you, Kuri." Oh great, now I was using a nickname. "But, you can barely stand let alone jump rooftops to get to an apartment."

She was silent… she knew I was right.

"Want to-. I-I can take you there." I _cannot_ believe I just offered a Foot ninja a piggy back ride home. Yeup. Tonight was going to be filed away so far back into the recesses of my mind not even Master Splinter would be able to find it.

Sakura was quiet for a moment. "I…I-Well, okay." I could hear the suspicion in her voice.

I stood up and looked down at her smiling broadly. Oh yeah. If Leo and Raph ever found out… I'd be beyond dead.

"Can you trust me, Sakura?"

_Sakura_

I looked up into his smiling face, into his eyes. Those damn _eyes._ There was no malice, or deception. Only kindness and innocence, simple and clean, pure and sweet.

"I can." I said.

Michelangelo seemed stunned by my confident answer, but it was only a fleeting pause. He smiled again and held his hand out to me. I reached for his hand and he grasped it pulling me up and into his arms with ease.

I felt my face get hot, I'd never been carried like this before, much less by a giant turtle. I felt my side twinge in pain and I let out a hiss.

"You okay, Dudette?" He asked looking down at me.

"Yes." I breathed out harshly.

"Okay, which way?"

"Wait. My kusarigama, I _need_ it." I strained the 'need'.

Michelangelo looked a little discouraged with rearming the enemy. "I…"

"I let you hold it." I said quickly. "Please. I need it. My grandfather, he made that for me himself. It's the only thing I have of him."

I watched as Michelangelo thought about it. "…Okay."

I sighed in relief as he walked over to where my weapon lay; he set me on the ground as he wound the chain up and stuck the weapon in his belt. He picked me back up, but I wasn't as easily flustered.

"Okay, dudette, which way?" He asked.

"North about four blocks and then west about two," I answered.

He grinned down at me, blue eyes shining. "I'd hold on if I were you."

I took his advice to heart and cautiously wrapped my arms around his neck. As soon as I did he ran and leapt off the building landing easily onto the shorter one next to it. I gasped as we landed the momentary wind dying, I had done that so many times, but never had I done it without my own control. It was strange relying on someone that I barely knew.

Within a few minutes we were standing on the roof of my brother's apartment building.

"This one?" Michelangelo asked.

I nodded and he set me down on my feet, holding me steady so I would not fall. Once he was sure I was steady he let me go.

We stood there awkwardly neither of us knowing what to say.

Michelangelo held out my kusarigama, "Here you go."

I took it from him, "Thank you."

"Yeah, no problem," He turned, "I should probably go."

"Uh, yes, me too." I said turning my own way.

"Well. See you around." He said.

"Yeah…See you around." I said as I watched him slip away into the darkness.

I would never talk about this night. I couldn't, it would only spell disaster. As I made my way slowly to the door leading down into the apartments, I turned back towards the direction Michelangelo had left. I'd like to think, that maybe, just maybe, we could have been friends.


End file.
